University of Santo Tomas (UST) — Pontifical and Royal University

Country

Philippines (PH)

City

Manila (España, Sampaloc)

Control

private

Language

English (Filipino bilingual context)

Accreditation

Commission on Higher Education (CHED) — Philippine national HE regulator established under Republic Act 7722 (Higher Education Act of 1994), an independent body attached to the Office of the President. CHED replaced the former Bureau of Higher Education under DECS. CHED administers granting of recognition, autonomy, and deregulated status to HEIs and designates Centers of Excellence (COE) and Centers of Development (COD) by discipline. Voluntary accreditation is provided by: PAASCU (Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools Colleges and Universities — Catholic-origin), PACUCOA (Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities Commission on Accreditation), and AACCUP (Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges and Universities of the Philippines — for state universities).. Verify on the public registry · last verified 2026-05-14.

Source

University of Santo Tomas (UST) — Pontifical and Royal University — CURATOR-RESEARCH REBUILD after collector data fabrication catch (Day 14) · tier: tier_2_directory

Website

https://www.ust.edu.ph

Founded 1611 (chartered by Order of Preachers / Dominicans on 28 April 1611 as Colegio de Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario; declared Royal University by King Charles III of Spain 1785; declared Pontifical University by Pope Leo XIII 1902; declared "Catholic University of the Philippines" by Pope Pius XII 1947 — THE OLDEST EXTANT UNIVERSITY IN ASIA and oldest in the Pacific, predating Harvard 1636 by 25 years). The OLDEST EXTANT UNIVERSITY IN ASIA — founded 28 April 1611 in Manila by the Spanish Order of Preachers (Dominicans), predating Harvard (1636) by 25 years. Located at the España campus in Sampaloc, Manila (main 21.5-hectare campus). Pontifical and Royal University — granted the Royal title by King Charles III of Spain in 1785 in recognition of UST's loyalty during the Anglo-Spanish defense of Manila; made Pontifical University by Pope Leo XIII in 1902; designated 'The Catholic University of the Philippines' by Pope Pius XII in 1947. ~40,000+ students across 22 degree-granting colleges including Medicine and Surgery (oldest in the Philippines), Engineering (oldest), Law (oldest), Pharmacy (oldest), Faculty of Sacred Theology, Arts and Letters, Commerce and Business Administration, Sciences, Education, Nursing, Rehabilitation Sciences, Tourism and Hospitality Management, Architecture, Fine Arts and Design, and the UST Conservatory of Music. Notable alumni include José Rizal (Philippine national hero). UST holds 4 National Cultural Treasures designated by the National Museum of the Philippines. 26 CHED Centers of Excellence and Centers of Development. Houses the world's largest collection of extant ancient Baybayin scripts (Archivo de la Universidad de Santo Tomas / AUST).

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